Golden Sun: Edge of Chaos
by Jamey
Summary: The days are only worsening.. the new lighthouses must be found, but something now threatens all of their lives.. (Please read and review! ;-; )
1. Growing Darkness

Golden Sun: Edge of Chaos  
  
Chapter One  
  
The sun was setting earlier now.  
It was clear the winter was growing closer now, with the biting winds and darker and darker days. Isaac still kept his spirits up; the mission still had to continue. It was only a short while that they were staying there, back in their hometown of Vale. The time that they had was shortening, but when a friend cannot continue, rests are necessary. But. the face that his friend could not continue.  
Garet, the one always getting jealous of Isaac, the one who always seemed to be infatuated with one of the girls, was now slowing them down. Isaac could only think of how awful it was for him to think of it as "slowing them down". It wasn't Garet's fault at all. He had done it to save the rest of them.  
Mars. Jupiter. Mercury. Venus. All lit, but nothing had happened. They had united to light them, him, Garet, Mia, Ivan, Felix, Jenna, Sheba and Piers. The stones that had burdened them as they carried them with them to the lighthouses had long since left their belts. They had fought so hard to put the orbs in their rightful places, why had nothing happened? So many time they had almost lost their lives, and so far, it was all for nothing. But Isaac knew, knew that there was some missing piece that they had not uncovered. Even though the skies darkening was because of the end of the season of autumn, he could not help but think that it also was an unsettling omen.  
Isaac was breathing in the fresh air, his golden locks ruffling in the chilly winds. It was restful on the boulder he sat on, up on a ledge just near the bridge that led across the small river cutting through the center of Vale. He heard a rustling of leaves behind him, and he slowly turned around, even though he was nearly positive that it was just the wind making the leaves dance.  
It was Jenna. Her dark violet hair flicked across her face in the wind, and her hand kept moving up to it to calm it down so that she could see where she was going. When she noticed that Isaac had seen her, she gave a small smile. She crossed over to where Isaac was sitting, her short black boots kicking up dirt at the heels. Isaac scooted a little to the left on the large boulder, allowing Jenna room to sit down next to him.  
"You haven't been inside in a while." Jenna said softly, taking the seat that Isaac indirectly offered her. She gazed out over the running water, half thinking of how lovely it looked, and the other half thinking of how it had ripped her life apart at one point. "He's doing better now though."  
Isaac nodded, still silent. He couldn't bring himself to smile. Garet had nearly sacrificed himself to save the lot of them from an early death. But now he lay on his death bad, his red hair drenched with the sweat that came from his body from sickness and pain. Why did he have to do it?  
The answer was obvious. It was either Garet sacrificed himself and allowed the rest of them to live on, unwounded, or to have them all perish and have Garet walk away, unscathed, unshaken. It was still hard not to think, though, of ways that the event could have been changed. If they had made a different decision, taken a different route.  
Never learned of the Lighthouses.  
They had gotten themselves into it. Their curiosity had made them climb the mountain, and so they had pulled themselves into it. It was still hard though. Why could they have just been normal children, and left it alone? Then they would all be there together, talking, laughing, having a good time. But then again, they would have never met Mia, Piers, Sheba, or united Felix once again.  
"You have to go in and see him some time, Isaac. He doesn't care about what happened before we went in. He just wants to talk with his friend while he's trying to recover." Jenna said quietly, turning to study Isaac's face.  
Isaac in turn looked back at her. Observing her face that was giving a sad smile, trying to stitch together a friendship, gave him strength. "I'll go Jenna."  
She nodded, her hair falling across her hazel eyes. She patted his thigh with her slim hand, then stood up. She walked over to the old wooden bridge, then turned around to gaze at him. "I wish things were the way they used to be." Jenna then walked swiftly across the bridge, leave a trail of depression behind her. She disappeared into the trees, on her way to Kraden's house.  
Isaac watched after her, feeling sad that he could not speak to her more. He knew that she would not talk to him again until he had seen Garet. He stood up off of the rock and dusted off the leaves that had drifted down onto him. He began to walk back to the houses, going up the stone steps that led to Garet's house.  
As he neared the house, the saw the door open and close, and out came Mia. Isaac knew that Garet had an infatuation with Mia, which brightened his spirits that she had gone and seen him. Garet would then be in a better mood, enlightened by Mia's caring.  
Mia stopped when she and Isaac were standing right next to each other. She reached out her thin arm and touched his hand, smiling at him. "He's feeling better. Please be kind to him, Isaac."  
Isaac nodded to her, returning a small, forced smile. How could everyone else always be so happy? You'd think that when they thought of Garet and what had happened, that they would at least feel the slightest sad. But no, everyone smiled. Was that their way of keeping courage? Either way, Isaac couldn't help but admire it, but it was lost to him.  
He put his hand on the doorknob leading into Garet's house, opening the door quietly as not to disturb Garet if sounds were effecting him right now. Garet's red haired head turned on his pillow to look over at the new entrant. He had a fairly solemn look on his face, but he gave a sort of smirk at Isaac's sullen figure.  
Isaac tromped across the wooden floor and set his self down in a chair that was obviously set up next to Garet's bed for visitors. "So Garet. how are you feeling?" It seemed like an idiotic question to ask, with Garet laying there wrapped in bandages and looking pale in the face from blood loss and sickness.  
"Getting better. as of a little bit before now." A large smile began to spread on Garet's large face. Isaac knew what it was for. Mia being there had obviously upped his spirits greatly. He couldn't help but smile at his friend's face.  
"That's because of Mia."  
Garet shook his head. "Isaac, it isn't. Sure, it was good of her to come visit me, definitely made me feel better. But you being here is an upper too. You were so angry with me at the light house, I thought we'd never be friends again. But now, here you are."  
"Garet, I-.."  
Garet cut him off. "Isaac, you were right. I looked back on it, and you were right. Now, just shake it off. I want us to shake it off, and have as strong of a friendship as we had before, okay?" He held his bandaged hand out to Isaac.  
Isaac stared at Garet's hand for a long moment, feeling a surge of unhappiness rush out of him. He took Garet's hand, and for a wounded man, Garet shook hard. They talked for a good hour, then Isaac left the house to give Garet some time to sleep.  
The sky was darker than he had ever seen it. Isaac knew that he would have to move soon. 


	2. The Eight Lighthouses

Chapter Two  
  
"Isaac! ISAAC! Wake up!" The troubled voice of Piers snapped Isaac out of his restful sleep. It was the first night in a long time that he had actually slept for more than four hours.  
Isaac groggily turned over in his bed, rubbing his pale blue eyes. He looked up at Piers, who had a completely fretted look on his face. "What is it, Piers?"  
"Kraden! Kraden has to see us! He found something! Isaac, this changes EVERYTHING!" There was a hint of excitement in the usually calm Piers' voice.  
"Alright, alright. I'm getting up. Leave the room while I get dressed." Isaac sad, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. He was dressed in only a baggy pair of pants, and the frigid autumn air did not feel cool on his bare skin once he came out from underneath the covers.  
"The others are getting up too. We'll meet at Kraden's house, and be quick!" Piers exclaimed, then turned and headed down the stairs and out of Isaac's house. He was glad that Piers' loud voice hadn't awoken his mother, who he could hear sleeping soundly in the room below his.  
Isaac clambered out of bed and stumbled over to his small wooden closet in the far right corner. Pulling it open, he withdrew his usual outfit, and his armor. Quickly putting it on, he finished by fastening his belt around his waist with the hilt of his sword. He hadn't worn his armor in awhile, and for a second he stood there, trying to remember why exactly he had chosen to put it on that very moment. There was an aching feeling inside of him that was calling out for him to put it on, so he decided that was what had made him do it. He ran his fingers through his hair, then ran down the stairs.  
There had been a light frost during the night. The leaves beneath his feet crunched ever louder than before, sounding like he was walking on chips. He saw Ivan, who surprising was also clad in his mage's armor, not too far ahead. Jogging slightly, he caught up to with his friend.  
Ivan turned his head, smiling through chattering teeth. "Morning, Isaac. Any idea what this is all about?"  
Isaac shook his head. "Piers just came and woke me up. All he sad was that Kraden found something."  
"Geez, that guy can really get around sometimes. He woke me up too; he must have gotten the others. Jenna and Felix are up ahead over there, but they couldn't hear me when I called to them." Ivan said in return to Isaac's statement. "Let's just hurry up and get there, it's starting to drive me insane."  
For the next few moments they walked in silence, trotting along the path that led to Kraden's book-stuffed house. Soon they were standing in front of the heaving oak door. Isaac lifted his hand to knock on the door, but he didn't get a chance to even knock once before the door swung open.  
They were greeted by Kraden's smiling face. "Come in! Come in! Wait 'till you see what I've found! Just WAIT!" Kraden gestured them in with a sweep of his cloaked arm. Isaac stepped inside, followed by Ivan.  
Sitting next to the fire was Garet, who was resting in an armchair. He looked slightly pained to be sitting upright, but Isaac knew that by his stubbornness, he would not miss what Kraden had to tell them. Jenna was sitting in a wooden chair a little to the right of Garet, and next to the corner. Propped up in the corner and looking grim was her younger brother, Felix. His dark brown hair was hanging down across his eyes so that Isaac could not see his face. His arms were crossed, giving Isaac a slight feeling that he didn't fully want to be here. Mia was sitting cross-legged on the floor next to Garet, and he could tell that Garet was fully enjoying this. Piers was pacing back and forth in front of one of Kraden's many bookshelves. Sheba was sitting, trying to look proper, trying to hold her tiredness, at the table in another wooden chair. Ivan moved across the room and also sat at the table, scooting slightly closer to the burning fire. Isaac took a few steps inside and stayed near the door, not taking a seat.  
Kraden moved himself so that he now stood in the center of the room, his face bright red with the excitement of what he had to tell them. "Alright, alright, now listen up! You all know of the elements that associated themselves with each star, right? Mars to fire, Venus to earth, Jupiter to lightning, and Mercury to water, correct?"  
Each of them gave Kraden an assuring nod, though they were each thinking how could Kraden even ask them that after what they had been through.  
Acknowledging each and every nod, Kraden continued. "The Four Lighthouses, when lit, gave absolutely no reaction. That is, in fact, because," He paused for a moment, as if to build the suspense for them, "There are more lighthouses!" He stopped there, waiting for that to sink in.  
Isaac withdrew back a few feet in the shock of what Kraden said. His face drained of the color it had. More lighthouses? After what they had DONE? All of them nearly getting killed, Garet nearly lost to them?  
And the one horrible thing that he himself had done, that still took a toll on him?  
He suddenly had a horrible, vivid memory of that day. The day that Garet was nearly lost. They had been standing at the very top of the Mars lighthouse, him, Garet, Mia, and Ivan, turned against Felix, Jenna, Sheba and Piers to stop them from throwing the Mars Star into the lighthouse. It was the most difficult fight of his life, besides the fact that they were fighting friend against friend. He kept fighting himself to turn on Garet, Garet who had taken over the leadership role that one day. The one day that Mia, Ivan and Garet could find nothing wrong with Garet's decisions. They didn't know what had happened, they didn't.  
"Isaac? Are you alright? Would you like me to continue?" Kraden's words snapped Isaac out of the memory. Sucking in some air, he nodded. He looked around the room, flicking from each of the other's completely bewildered faces.  
"Alright then, hear me out now. There was in fact, a time when there were more Adepts. In my research, I found that there are traces that those races do still exist; though their numbers are so few that they would be nearly impossible to find. But it is, in fact, that there are more Lighthouses that are aligned with the other adepts. That means that there are more elements, and I think that there is a Lighthouse for each and every planet, save our own."  
"That means that besides Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter, there are the Saturn, Pluto, Uranus and Neptune. I've been working on each element that is aligned with these planets, but so far, I've found very little. Since we now know that all the lighthouses must be lit, we must, as soon as possible, begin our travels. I have found some traces of the Saturn Adepts near Tolbi, and a cave north west of there. So, what do you have to say? Are we going to follow this?"  
Isaac knew that the question was directed to him. He felt their eyes all turn to look at him, but he couldn't focus. He was feeling a pain that was familiar to him, but had not been there long and he wished would go away. He then felt himself begin to fall back, though he felt no sense that he would hit anything. He saw Jenna's mouth say his name, but he could not hear it. They were all moving to him, but he could barely register it.  
The pain overwhelmed him, and all went black. 


	3. Memories

Chapter Three  
  
What was that? What was that in the distance? Is it the thing speaking? Where am I? GET THIS THING OUT OF HERE! I DON'T WANT TO BE HERE ANYMORE!  
Isaac awoke in a cold sweat, his clothes completely drenched in it. As he awoke and sat upright in an instant, he let out such a gasp that caused the others to come running in, even Garet hobbling along. He was back in his house, in his bedroom. What Kraden had told them. was that just a dream? Had he really passed out from pain, as a side effect from that incident?  
Jenna was talking frantically to him, but he couldn't hear her. They were all talking to him, asking if he was alright, but he just closed his eyes, unable to respond to them. At least he knew that it wasn't a dream, what had happened. He knew what It wanted right then and there. It wanted him to remember the day at the Lighthouse. Once the memory of that was recognized, It would go away for awhile, leaving him in peace.  
Standing at the top of the Mars Lighthouse, the star had gotten thrown in. Felix had tackled Isaac, and somehow in the middle of it all, the Star had rolled out of reach and clattered into the pit of the lighthouse. They all had stood, staring in awe at the red light that was beginning to emerge from it. The Red Demon had come out, and it took them all away to another place.  
The place. The place was so dark, and dreary. There was a horrible, burning heat that threatened to cook them alive if they did not escape. The Red Demon lashed out at them, and it took all of their strength to keep from being killed. When they had thought they were finished, there was a rip. In what had appeared to be the distance, there was a tear in the scenery, and through it they could see the Lighthouse, where they had just been. Knowing this was their only way out, they turned and ran for it.  
Felix had Sheba's arm, helping her to run faster. Isaac himself ran with Jenna, and all the while trying to keep everyone ahead of him, to make sure they all made it back safely. Garet, Garet had fallen behind. Isaac hadn't even noticed it. The Red Demon lashed out a final blow, one that could have easily ended them all.  
But Garet stood before it.  
It was blinding after that. They then found themselves at the base of the Lighthouse, all of them regaining conscious. Isaac at first was overjoyed to find that Garet was still with them, until he clearly saw Garet. It was a sight that he would never forget.  
His best friend was covered with the most horrid of third degree burns, profusely bleeding gashes, and broken limbs. His breathing was so shallow, they at first thought that he wasn't even breathing, and that he was dead. Mia had crawled over, checking his pulse, trying to find if he was okay. She and Piers then cast as many healing spells as they could possibly handle, but Garet did not improve. They then made the pain- stricken journey to the closet town they could find, all the while silently praying that they would not lose the friend that had saved all of their lives.  
All the while, all Isaac could think about was that the last thing he said to his best friend were only hateful words.  
The sound of Jenna's weeping brought Isaac back to reality. He knew then and there that he did not want them feeling like there was going to be another near loss of a friend. He opened his eyes lightly again, trying to move his weakened arms.  
She let out a gasp as he saw him open his eyes then immediately bent down and wrapped her arms around him. The others breathed sighs of relief, knowing that if he was awake he would be okay.  
"What happened, Isaac? Are you alright?" Garet asked, who was seated in a chair right by the bed. He rested a large hand lightly on his shoulder.  
Isaac turned his head, completely unaware of how glazed over his eyes looked. He stared at Garet for a moment, then said, "I'm sorry Garet, I said the most hateful things to you before it happened." He could leave it at that. Leave them to think that everything was okay, and that what had just happened to Isaac was not a result of Garet's mistake.  
Garet took in a large breath of air, then answered Isaac, "It's okay Isaac, don't worry about it." He smiled a little, but it felt fake because Garet knew himself that Isaac would always be worrying about it.  
"Oi! All of you out now!" Isaac's mother cried, coming into the room. She smiled at her son. "Isaac needs his rest now, you here? As much as I dislike it, you can start your journey again only once my boy is all rested up!"  
His friends smiled at him before they left the room, being ushered by his mother. Jenna touched his cheek for amount before she left, giving him a sweet smile. He couldn't help but notice, that when they all left, Felix lingered, somewhat staring him down.  
Did he know?  
But as they all left the room, Isaac decided that sleep was better than pondering Felix's knowledge of him.  
  
Jenna waved good-bye as she parted from Ivan, who lived in a house right near her's and Felix's now. The others had left in the opposite directions, so she was usually walking with Ivan when they were all gathered together. She stepped into her warm house, pulling off her cloak and welcoming the multiple fire's heat. Felix stopped in, looking grumpy for some unknown reason.  
There was a creak upstairs.  
Jenna and Felix both looked upwards to it, knowing that there should not be a creak. Their house was old, but their floorboards did not creak. Jenna immediately moved to go up the stairs, but Felix grabbed her shoulder, shaking his head. Pushing her slightly away, he started to go up the stairs first. Hesitating for a few moments, she then started up the stairs behind him.  
Felix stepped into the upstairs room. He turned his head to the left, examining that side, then to the right. When he stepped into the room to get a better look at something he saw that looked suspicious, he was greeted with a sword lashing across his face. With out a chance to react, the hilt of the blade then came at his face, and he fell to the ground, knocked out. Jenna let out a scream as her weapon was ripped away from her and the assailant to a hold of her. 


	4. The Assassin

Chapter Four  
  
Isaac had fallen asleep again, and this time he felt well rested. When he finally woke up again, he gave a large yawn and stretched across his bed. He rolled over on his side, looking out the window.  
He knew it was the next day, and early morning. He could tell by the light of the sun that was just beginning to peek through the trees; making the fallen leaves look like a growing fire. Isaac pulled himself out of bed, only feeling slight effects of the exhaustion from what his body had gone through.  
Soon he was down the stairs, fully dressed. He wandered over to the kitchen and grabbed an apple, starting to crunch on it quietly. His mother was still sleeping, a small snore coming out from her bedroom. Isaac tilted his head to the side slightly, allowing his neck to give a small crack.  
Throwing the apple core in a small burlap bag, Isaac headed out of the house. He ran his hands through his hair, thinking about Jenna. He knew that she would probably like to know that he was up and about, so he turned his feet so that they started heading over to her's and Felix's house.  
Knocking with the back of his hand on the door to their house, he waiting quietly for one of them to come to the door. After waiting a few moments, he knocked again. When there still was no answer, he grew slightly suspicious. The first thought that crossed his mind was that they were not at home at all. He opened the door a crack, peering in. No, they were home. He saw two pairs of boots, one belonging to Jenna and the other belonging to Felix.  
Pushing the door open and stepping in, he called out, "Jenna?"  
When he did not receive an answer like he was hoping he would, he began to walk more into the house. Isaac walked around quietly on the first floor, checking each room to see if they were in there. When he could not find them, he slowly started walking up the wooden stairs. He was beginning to grow uneasy, not liking the situation. Why weren't they answering, if they were really home at all?  
As he neared the top of the stairs, he saw specks of red against the wall. He felt a sudden surge that immediately told him that everything was now definitely not okay, and he raced upstairs into the room, his eyes frantic.  
Felix was sprawled out on the floor spread eagle. There was a large gash running across his face, crossing over where other scars lay. There was another lump up near his temple, and blood flowed slowly from it. His brown hair was matted against the blood. Isaac raced over, kneeling down next to him, scanning the room for Jenna. He didn't see her anywhere or traces of blood that would hint to him where she lay. Sucking in a deep breath, he shook Felix lightly, trying to wake him up.  
The boy let out a moan, but that was all. His breathing was shallow, and Isaac could tell that it was not improving. It was lucky that he had not gotten hit directly on the temple, because Isaac knew then Felix wouldn't even be breathing. He put his arm around his friend's back and pulled him up, pulling Felix's right arm around his shoulder so that he rested heavily on his back. He dragged him over to a bed that he was pretty sure was Felix's due to the messy way it was made, and slumped him down onto the bed.  
Making sure that Felix's head rested on the pillow, Isaac tore off a piece of his own shirt. He started mopping off Felix's face, then simply wrapped the torn cloth around his wounds, making sure that it did not cover his nose or mouth. Having done the best of what he could then, he bolted back down the stairs and out the door. His feet moved swiftly, even though he was still tired and sore from his own problems. Isaac's feet soon lead him to Mia's small house that was recently built.  
He knocked heavily on the door, calling out, "MIA!" Hardly being able to wait for a response, he pushed the door open. Mia was already running towards the door, still wearing a nightgown with a robe wrapped around it.  
"Isaac? What's wrong?" She moved up to him, looking at his heavily breathing form.  
Isaac shook his head, hardly being able to talk now. "Something happened to Felix and Jenna! Jenna's not there, and Felix, he's. he's just bleeding from the face, there's a gash and a lump and his breathing just isn't improving."  
Mia took one look at him, then raced out the door. The sticks and rocks on the ground hurt her bare feet, but she ignored them for now. She raced into Jenna's and Felix's house, the door already open and all. Her eyes searched over the first floor, Isaac not having told her where Felix was. Finally she ran upstairs and immediately saw Felix lying on the bed.  
She moved over to the bed, and moved the cloth away from his wounds. Grimacing a little, she held her hands out over his face. A soft blue light fell from her fingers as Isaac came into the room, and the gash began to close and the lump on his head stopped bleeding, reducing greatly in size.  
"Is he going to be alright?" Isaac asked. He knew that at that moment it was right to ask about Felix's condition, though all his mind could really think about was where Jenna was, if Jenna was okay. Mia nodded a little. "He'll be okay now. he lost a lot of blood though, so I doubt he'll be waking up for awhile." She knew that half of that was not news that Isaac wanted to hear, considering that meant that Felix wouldn't be able to tell them what happened or give any indication of where Jenna might be.  
It was only a short noise, but neither of them had any time to react to the twang they suddenly heard. Mia let out a cry and fell over backwards, her hand moving immediately to her right shoulder where now an arrow stuck out.  
"Mia!" Isaac yelled out. He purposely yelled as loud as possible, hoping that somebody near by would wake, would come and investigate. He began to shift over and move towards her.  
There was a thunk as feet landed in the room, and Isaac felt them move right up next to him. He turned his head, and right in front of his forehead was the sharp end of an arrow.  
"Your turn, boy." 


End file.
